Igor Oreper, vice president solutions, Bitmovin, looks at the 5G chicken and the data egg
Contributor 1 min ago
Igor Oreper, vice president solutions, Bitmovin, looks at the 5G chicken and the data egg
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin> Igor Oreper, vice president solutions, Bitmovin, looks at the 5G chicken and the data egg
https://www.tvbeurope.com/features/online-video-delivery-at-the-dawn-of-the-5g-era title=Share via Email class=share-email>
Nearly 10 years on from the world's first publicly available LTE services, the impact 4G networks have had on mobile video consumption is clear. The ever-growing availability of online video content has changed the way media is distributed and consumed forever. Consumers have greater control and flexibility to watch what they want, when they want, on the device or platform of their choosing, in increasingly high definition. Research from Openwave Mobility showed that in the last five years, video consumption on mobile networks has grown on average 50-60 per cent year-on-year, a figure that is more than doubled when looking at developing markets in isolation.
In addition, at Mobile World Congress this year, we saw the future of video consumption on the go being realised, with manufacturers such as Huawei, Xiaomi and LG unveiling the first 5G phones to hit the market. Over the next few months, carriers like Verizon in the US and Vodafone in the UK will also start to make 5G services available in selective locations.
The 5G chicken and the data egg
At the dawn of next generation networks, one of the biggest challenges for online video content providers today, lies in managing the costs of Content Delivery Networks (CDNs). While the cost per byte has continued to decrease, the bandwidth required to keep consumers happy is increasing at an even faster rate. Online video demand is certain to continue, but is the development of 5G a response to this, or the means by which it will be accelerated? The significant improvements in transmission speed, quality and reliability will enable close to zero latency between a streaming source and the viewer, and could see newer technologies like virtual and augmented reality viewing experiences enter the mainstream.
In the short term though, early 5G deployments will represent last mile broadband data connectivity, with backbone networks growing capacity with the current trajectory driven by fibre backbones, overlaid by CDNs and boosted by such techniques as point of presence (POP) peering across global telecom providers.
Across 4G/LTE and 5G networks, digital video demand will more likely be driven by trends like cord cutting, virtual multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs), 4K video, and global adoption of video-capable mobile devices on WiFi or mobile networks. Cisco's study projects that globally, IP video traffic will be 82 per cent of all IP traffic by 2022, up from 75 per cent in 2017. Global IP video traffic will grow four-fold from 2017 to 2022. By that time, 5G is only expected to account for 3 per cent of global mobile devices and connection.
As user demand for data and bitrates keep going up without waiting for 5G, new approaches to video compression are an absolute necessity to keep the cost of streaming down, so content providers can spend their resources on creating more compelling content. Regardless of what network content is being delivered over, this can be achieved through three video workflow techniques: multi-codec streaming, per-file encoding and per-scene adaptation.
Multi-codec streaming
This bandwidth-saving technology enables a player to detect what the most efficient codec will be for streaming video on any browser or platform. AV1, H.264, HEVC, VP9, VVC have all been designed to suit a specific environment or type of content. By encoding videos into multiple codecs and configuring a player to make informed decisions about which files to stream and to whom, operators can deliver the highest picture quality on existing bandwidth. Looking further ahead, multi-codec solutions will assist early adopters as new codecs such as AV1 become ready for mass market penetration - which promises even larger bandwidth reductions.
Per-title encoding
This process involves adjusting an encoding configuration to optimise a specific video asset. It leverages the fact that some videos are far less complex than others, and therefore can be encoded at lower bitrates. Cartoons are a classic example of where this is particularly effective. Generally speaking, they contain scenes with large areas of solid colour at a lower complexity level, which can be compressed much more efficiently than the more detailed scenes in action or sci-fi movies.
Per-title encoding relies on performing a complexity analysis on each title before the encoding process begins. That complexity score is used to adjust the bitrate ladder by sending a new encoding profile to the encoder. The result: each video in a library is encoded in a way that best suits the content - minimising the bitrate and greatly reducing bandwidth usage.
Per-scene adaptation
This technique leverages the fact that the human eye is often unable to register a lot of the information delivered in a video stream. In most videos, there are many scenes that can be streamed at a lower bitrate without the viewer noticing. Per-scene adaptation involves supplementing the adaptation logic that governs the viewer's behaviour with an additional stream of quality metadata that contains information about the visual complexity of a particular segment in the video.
In an adaptive streaming scenario with a standard configuration, the player will attempt to download a video file that fits the screen it is playing on. In a player that is configured for per-scene adaptation, the player can be alerted to
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
28/01/2026
Music discovery should feel intuitive and personal. That's why we're continuing to give you more control, so you can ask for what you want, shape what y...
28/01/2026
Today, Charlie Hellman, Spotify's Head of Music, shared the following note on the Spotify for Artists blog that the company paid out more than $11 billion t...
28/01/2026
As demand for more complex live sports coverage grows, Balkan broadcast specialist MVP has upgraded its flagship HD1 progressive OB truck with the installation ...
28/01/2026
Luxembourg, January 26, 2026 - SES S.A. ( SES or the Company ), a leading space solutions company, acknowledges the credit rating action announced by Fitch to...
28/01/2026
28 Jan 2026
VEON Notes Kyivstar Group Publication of Selected Full Year 2025 Fi...
28/01/2026
Rohde & Schwarz to host 2026 edition of its online event Demystifying EMC Rohde & Schwarz invites the global EMC community to join a crucial discussion on pre...
28/01/2026
Stadtwerke Wolfhagen Modernize Customer Management with AEP.energysuite from Arv...
27/01/2026
Click for Japanese version
Tokyo, Japan - January 27, 2026 - Akamai Technolo...
27/01/2026
Today, Spotify is proud to support our partner Backline, an industry-leading men...
27/01/2026
With nearly 29 million monthly listeners and clear momentum on Spotify, Net n Ve...
27/01/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
27/01/2026
New agreement for uninterrupted UHF connectivity for Australian Defence Force through 2033, With Options Extending to 2041
Luxembourg, January 13, 2026 - Satel...
27/01/2026
Tuesday 27 January 2026
SNL UK creative team expands as Pauli Lovejoy, Annie Ha...
27/01/2026
RT Supporting the Arts is delighted to support a dynamic programme of cultural events taking place across Ireland this February. From visual art, film, music, ...
26/01/2026
Music videos play a huge part in how fans connect with their favorite songs, but...
26/01/2026
Wuppertal January 26, 2026
Riedel and Media Tailor Deliver Unified Broadcast a...
26/01/2026
26 Jan 2026
VEON Unveils the New Beeline Uzbekistan Network Operations Center, ...
26/01/2026
Bookish is created by and stars Mark Gatiss
Images available HERE
Following th...
26/01/2026
Monday 26 January 2026
New Sky Original Series explores Entertainment Juggernaut, The X Factor
Sky today confirmed it has greenlit a premium, definitive docum...
26/01/2026
Monday 26 January 2026
Sky confirms major investment to transform Livingston ca...
26/01/2026
Software for Stable Data Management and Lasting Business Success in Uncertain Ti...
26/01/2026
RT is today publishing a statistical summary of the Register of External Activities for the third quarter of 2025.
The RT Register of External Activities com...
24/01/2026
RT and Virgin Media Television kick off comprehensive free-to-air coverage of t...
23/01/2026
Staines-upon-Thames, UK, 29 July, 2025 - Yospace, the global leader in Dynamic A...
23/01/2026
Spotify's annual Best New Artist celebration honors the rising stars whose talent, creativity, and dedication have propelled them to the music industry'...
23/01/2026
Paramount is transforming its operations by unifying the media supply chains of their top brands into a scalable global pipeline.
This transformation enhances ...
23/01/2026
Every delay costs. When a subtitle fails QC, even the smallest issue can mean missed deadlines, extra vendor costs, or frustrated teams. The new Accurate.Video ...
23/01/2026
Find out where Sare and Suze are now on RT One and RT Player Thursday 29 January at 10.15pm
Hit drama SisterS, created by, written by and starring real-life ...
23/01/2026
Friday 23 January 2026
Sky appoints Lisa Clark as Commissioning Executive for SNL UK
Lisa Clark headshot
PNG (468KB)
Lisa Clark joins Sky as Commissioning E...
23/01/2026
RT is delighted to announce that the RT and F s ireann / Screen Ireland supported short film Retirement Plan has been nominated for Best Animated Short at th...
22/01/2026
Last November, Ed Sheeran returned to his musical roots for an intimate, one-nig...
22/01/2026
Every delay costs. When a subtitle fails QC, even the smallest issue can mean missed deadlines, extra vendor costs, or frustrated teams. The new Accurate.Video ...
22/01/2026
Thursday 29 January 9:35pm on RT 2 and RT Player
The dating show returns with something old, something new and a dater you may already know
Thursday evenings...
22/01/2026
Rohde & Schwarz, Qualcomm, and Motorola demonstrate successful 5G Broadcast comp...
22/01/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
21/01/2026
Wednesday 21 January 2026
Backing Britain on the global stage: Sky becomes an o...
21/01/2026
Fox Corporation Executives to Discuss Second Quarter Fiscal 2026 Financial Resul...
21/01/2026
Baselight v7 brings colourists and post-houses smarter mattes, faster workflows and deeper control
FilmLight, known for its detailed colour toolset and longsta...
21/01/2026
RT News is pleased to announce the appointment of Jackie Fox as its new Washington Correspondent. Jackie is a multimedia journalist with RT News and has repor...
19/01/2026
Monday 19 January 2026
Sky News reinvents News at Ten for the modern audience with The Wrap
Sky News today announces The Wrap, a bold evolution of its 10pm ou...
19/01/2026
DPA Microphones is striking a new chord in piano miking with the debut of its DPK2015 Piano Stereo Kit, an out-of-the-box, plug-and-play miking solution that ta...
19/01/2026
DPA Microphones will present its 4099 CORE Instrument Microphone and redesigned...
19/01/2026
Trianel relies on Arvato Systems for future-proof data center operations
Moving to the cloud: Arvato Systems implements extensive IT migration project
Migrat...
19/01/2026
Celebrating 21 Years of the RT Choice Music Prize
RT Choice Music Prize
In association with IMRO and IRMA
Irish Album of the Year 2025 - Shortlist Announce...
18/01/2026
January 18 2026, 21:30 (PST) Dolby Cinema Arrives in Bengaluru: Dolby Laborator...
Igor Oreper, vice president solutions, Bitmovin, looks at the 5G chicken and the data egg
